Paradigm Shift
by buffett-head
Summary: The fallout following Daredevils. A little emotional, with hints of shules.


**A/N: **I've finally caught up with all of ssn 3 and 4 episodes so far. If I could only do the same with my writing...

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"**I heard something I never could though would ever exist,  
Coming home was only a myth.  
****I saw something, can't make it out but can never forget,  
****Seeing only what the water reflects."  
**'**Brackish Waters,' The Gin Blossoms**

**Paradigm Shift: A radical change in somebody's basic assumptions about or approach to something.**

Shawn looked up from the television to see Juliet walk through the door of Psych. "Hey, did we have a meeting or something?" He checked his watch. "Gus usually reminds me about our appointments."

Juliet smiled quickly, "No…no meeting. I was just in the area."

"Oh." Shawn stood up from his seat.

Juliet stopped next to his desk. "Carlton is talking to an informant a few blocks away. He thought it would be best if he did it alone."

"Alone? What about back up?"

"He's been working with this guy for a long time and doesn't want to spook him." Juliet explained.

"Really?" Shawn's interest rose. "Can I ask what the case is about?"

"The usual," Juliet sighed. "Drugs, some break-ins; things like that." She glanced around the room. "I didn't interrupt you, did I?"

"No, not at all. It's lunch time so Gus is out running his route. The dedication he shows to his other job is extraordinary."

"Ah-hah…" Juliet answered.

"You want to tail Lassie, see what's going on?" Shawn asked.

"No, that's okay."

"You want to try and find some lunch?" Shawn raised his eyebrows. "I'm starving."

"Lunch sounds good." Juliet agreed.

"Well then, follow me." Shawn grabbed his keys and headed for the door.

Shawn led the way to a small seafood shack down the boardwalk. They found a table under an umbrella outside, and Shawn ordered the shrimp tacos while Juliet had grilled fish. The waitress brought tortilla chips and salsa for them and water for drinks. "Your food will be ready soon." She left them with a smile.

Shawn had been uncharacteristically quiet on the walk, and Juliet attempted to jumpstart the conversation. "The weather is beautiful today." She watched him look around, taking in the blue sky, the waves breaking on the beach, and the few thin clouds on the western horizon.

"Yeah, nice day." He agreed. He knew he should be talking, saying something, but nothing came to mind. He ate another chip.

Juliet tried again, "So the real reason I came by was to see how the daredevil case turned out." She knew Shawn loved to talk about his cases.

He surprised her when he didn't smile or laugh. "Yeah, that was a little more complicated than I thought it would be."

"But you solved it, right?" She asked.

Shawn wrinkled his brow at her question. "Of course." He said, as if the answer was obvious. "It's just…it was an inside job and most everyone who works with Dutch is family or friends. I can't really get into it too much, psychic-client privileges and all that."

Concern showed on Juliet's face. "Oh, that's terrible."

"Yeah, well…what about you? How are the Win a Date with Carlton Lassiter auditions coming along?"

Juliet laughed, "It's a complete disaster."

"Ooh, now I'm interested." Shawn sat up.

"Carlton would kill us if I told you." Juliet said.

"I'm already on his list." Shawn reminded her.

"Well…" Juliet looked around and saw the waitress coming with their food. "Hold on."

The waitress set down the paper baskets of food. "Do you need anything else?"

Shawn looked to Juliet, who shrugged her shoulders. "Nope." He said. "I think we're good for now."

Juliet made sure no one was listening and then said. "Well, we were on a stakeout and I left to get coffee. When I got back to the car Carlton was talking with…well, she was…" Juliet couldn't keep from laughing. "She was a hooker." She finally got out.

"What?" Shawn laughed in disbelief. "Lassie was hitting on a hooker?" Juliet just nodded. "How did he not know she was…what she was?"

"I was talking to him about my friend, and when I went to get coffee the woman walked up to Carlton's car and he thought she was the friend I mentioned and that I had left to give them time to talk." Juliet explained.

Shawn chuckled, "On a stakeout?"

Juliet nodded again. "You can't tell him I told you."

"I know." That gleam was in his eyes again, "But Jules, that's priceless."

"Shawn," she pleaded.

"I promise. No telling."

Juliet grinned and they both turned to lunch. The conversation stumbled and Shawn slipped back to his previous mood. They ate quickly, but the food was good. When the waitress came back with the bill, Shawn paid for them both.

"Shawn, you don't have to pay." Juliet told him.

"It's fine, Jules. You can buy me a smoothie on the way back to Psych and we'll call it even." Shawn told her.

They walked slowly, Shawn with his hands in his pockets and Juliet occasionally tugging at her suit jacket. She knew something was bothering him, and was searching for a way to ask him about it. When they came to the smoothie bar she ordered strawberry-banana for herself and a pineapple for him. But instead of giving it to him she held onto it. "You sure nothing's bothering you?"

Shawn shook his head. "It's no big deal."

"Is this about your case?" Juliet continued towards Psych, dodging Shawn's attempt to take his smoothie.

"No…well, maybe a little." Shawn admitted. "It's just, it got me thinking."

"You can talk to me, you know." Juliet told him. She looked into his eyes and suddenly the moment was a little too serious. She glanced at the ocean and said, "You help me and Carlton all the time."

"You won't let this go will you?" Shawn asked with a bitter grin.

Juliet remembered the Tankana case. Shawn had been there for her. Now it seemed like he needed her. She found her courage and smiled quickly. "Not if you actually want your smoothie."

"That's just cruel." Shawn told her, but her expression left little room for argument. "Have you ever put together all the clues and come up with an answer that made perfect sense, only to find out it's wrong?"

Juliet was quiet for a moment. "Shawn, I don't think I understand what you're asking."

"Dutch kept getting into accidents that nearly killed him. And it seemed easy enough. More dangerous stunts mean more money and his equipment was always tampered with. Pretty easy, right?"

Juliet nodded. It wouldn't be hard to connect the dots.

"Then there's the fact that he took out a life insurance policy and kept it a secret from his family. And it only pays if he dies during a stunt."

"Definite motive," Juliet commented. So far it was nice, clean open-and-shut case.

"But then I learn one last crucial detail: Dutch is dying of cancer." Shawn told her. "And he's kept that a secret as well."

Juliet shook her head in confusion. "Cancer? Why wouldn't he tell anyone?"

They reached Psych again and Shawn pulled the door open for her. "Because his stunt business is all his family has."

"So?"

"So…" Shawn sighed. "Dutch was trying to kill himself so that his family could get the payout."

It took a moment for everything to sink in. "Dutch sabotaged himself because it had to look like an accident." Juliet realized.

Shawn just nodded. Juliet handed him his smoothie and he took a sip. Then he said, "I had to shift my paradigm."

"What?"

"Change my way of thinking. Even though I was finding all the clues, I had to change all my assumptions. I wasn't looking for a killer. I was looking for a reason why Dutch would kill himself. It just so happened that nearly all the clues fit both scenarios. When I realized the truth I got to him as fast as I could. I had to talk him out of it."

"Did it work?" Juliet was afraid of the answer.

"So far, but who knows for sure?" Shawn shrugged his shoulders in doubt.

"Shawn, please don't talk like that."

"If something happens you can't tell. I gave him my word, and it's the only thing his family would have left."

"I get it, Shawn." Juliet touched his arm. "Is that what's been bothering you so much?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean why do I get the feeling that this about more than the case?" She wanted him to open up. She wanted him to trust her. "Like it struck a nerve or something."

"Now you're the psychic?" Shawn asked, but there's no humor in his voice.

Juliet shook her head and smiled. "Woman's intuition."

"Unfair advantage." Shawn uttered. He looked out the window, "When my mom came back to town, it was the first time I'd seen her in a while. In a few years, actually."

Juliet led him to the oversized chair and gently pushed him to sit down. She took the rolling chair from behind Shawn's desk and sat down next to him. He looked at her and she silently encouraged him to continue.

He desperately wanted to deflect her concern. Or simply shut down entirely. These weren't her problems and they were just friends, so why should he cry to her? He wasn't about to dump his emotional baggage in her lap and hope she would make him feel better. But he had to tell her something. Maybe he could get away with being vague, "Did you ever find out something about your parents that completely changed everything you knew about them?" He asked. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs.

Juliet gave him a thin smile and asked, "Did your parents have a fight while your mom was here?" Her voice was full of concern.

Shawn looked away. "No, actually it was…it was my mom and me." He silently swore that he wouldn't reveal any more.

Juliet took his hands in hers. "I'm sorry."

He stared at their hands intertwined on his knees. "I found out what happened. I found out why they got divorced." He confessed quietly. Juliet just squeezed his hands and Shawn couldn't stop himself. "All these years I thought that my dad left us. But then my mom told me she was the one who left."

"Shawn," the words die on her lips. What could she possibly say?

The compassion in her voice broke through his desire to hide the truth. "It's obvious to me now; near the end my dad came home early from work most days, and they went to marriage counseling or talked or spent time together. But she still left." He sounded angry, even to himself. "It's just, I've hated my father for breaking up our family." Shawn told her. "I mean I _really_ hated him. And now I realize that he let me hate him. That he took the blame because…I don't know why. Because my mom and I have always been close and because he still loves her. I never knew that he tried to hold us together."

It took every ounce of her self-control to not pull him into a hug.

Shawn briefly looked into her eyes before focusing on the floor. "I just don't know what to do. Now I hate him for not telling me the truth. Everything I thought I knew, everything I did because I assumed…It's literally a life-changing event. I haven't had one of those in at least a couple years." a faint smile touched his lips. He was better--and worse--for talking about it. He felt more than vulnerable, he felt weak. It wasn't often he truly needed another person, and for as long as he could remember the only other person he trusted was Gus.

Juliet silently held his hands. Finally she said, "I'm so sorry Shawn. But you don't have to hide how you're feeling. Gus is here for you…I'm here for you." He looked up at that and she gave him a sad smile. "Just hang in there."

"Yeah," Shawn sounded lost. Juliet's phone rang, startling both of them. Shawn pulled away first. "You better get that. It's probably Lassie."

Juliet pulled her phone out of her purse. "Hello? It's fine, I'm ready…Yeah, I'm at Psych. Okay, I'll meet you at the stoplight." She closed her phone and looked at Shawn. "Carlton's finished." She pointed to the door.

"Go, I'm fine." Shawn brushed aside her concern. "You need me to walk with you?"

"No, he's just down the street." Juliet stood up slowly. "I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, I need to pick up an old check by Thursday since our rent is due on Friday." Shawn told her.

Juliet smiled. "Well then, bye Shawn."

"Bye Jules." Shawn said from his seat.

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**End Scene**


End file.
